Andrew & Esther - Through Our Eyes Archive
Archived Thoughts
Beijing buzz (June 5, 2008)
emotion in China (May 25, 2008)
what 1 Euro could buy you if you came to visit (May 11, 2008)
on visa-runs and escaping hotel fires (May 4, 2008)
recent observations & discoveries (April 30, 2008)
on ordering water and near tricycle collisions (April 16, 2008)
on learning Chinese and on how to catch a bad flu at the park (April 10, 2008)
highlights (April 9, 2008)
Foreign media must have Facebook access during Olympics, IOC tells China (April 2, 2008)
Home Sweet Home (March 26, 2008)
Then and Now (March 26, 2008)
stranded bags! (March 8, 2008)
on visas, weddings, how to get free food & funny hair dos (March 4, 2008)
Warm greetings! (February 12, 2008)
A Whole New World (February 5, 2008)
Newness in the New Year (January 6, 2008)
The Feast of Life (November 23, 2007)
Our Paris (November 11, 2007)
A Freezing Wilderness Retreat (October 22, 2007)
Reflections from a Recovering Bride (October 8, 2007)
Mr. and Mrs. Brumme (September 29, 2007)
One Month and Counting (August 22, 2007)
Everything French (July 19, 2007)
Open Wide Your Mouths! (July 9, 2007)
Learning from Trees (July 3, 2007)
A City of Lights - The Paris of Central Europe (June 25, 2007)
Brumme's Descend on Europe (June 8, 2007)
I Said Yes! (May 13, 2007)
Liaisons and Goodness Abound (April 22, 2007)
Gourmet Cuisine Catastrophe (March 21, 2007)
It Really Has Been Too Long This Time (March 15, 2007)
The French Postal System, V-Day, and Other Tidbits (February 21, 2007)
Celebrating in Paris, Working in Oxford & Relaxing in the Alps (January 29, 2007)
With Ma Petite Amie at Last! (January 11, 2007)
Hanging on for the Ride (December 31, 2006)
A New Life (December 18, 2006)
I've Gotta Go See About a Girl (November 23, 2006)
On France (November 10, 2006)
Liberating Love, an Awkward Transition and Christmas Candy (November 1, 2006)
The Western Bible (October 20, 2006)
The Whole Church Gathered (October 3, 2006)
On Steve Irwin (September 7, 2006)
Lewis on Happiness (August 10, 2006)
The Tragic "Unthinkable Crisis" (July 27, 2006)
Not My Life (July 6, 2006)
The Two Year Reunion (June 10, 2006)
A Fishy Story Set Right (May 26, 2006)
Response to "The Wedding Planner" by Sagers (April 30, 2006)
White Bunnies and Bloody Lambs (April 14, 2006)
Flexing Our Political Muscle (March 22, 2006)
For Your Viewing Pleasure (March 7, 2006)
Come to Our Church! (February 21, 2006)
Peanuts and Airplanes (February 15, 2006)
Confessing My Ignorance (January 30, 2006)
The Jewish Kid Jesus (January 16, 2006)
Friends...A Dime a Dozen? (January 9, 2006)
Old Test Article Here (January 2, 2006)
So Much to Say...That Others Have Already Said (December 23, 2005)
Narnia - at last! (December 8, 2005)
Lewis on our Eating Disorder (December 1, 2005)
North Korea - Revealing the Darkness (November 20, 2005)
Shining - Like You've Never Seen it Before (November 15, 2005)
Are You Emerging? (November 3, 2005)
emotion in China (May 25, 2008)
what 1 Euro could buy you if you came to visit (May 11, 2008)
on visa-runs and escaping hotel fires (May 4, 2008)
recent observations & discoveries (April 30, 2008)
on ordering water and near tricycle collisions (April 16, 2008)
on learning Chinese and on how to catch a bad flu at the park (April 10, 2008)
highlights (April 9, 2008)
Foreign media must have Facebook access during Olympics, IOC tells China (April 2, 2008)
Home Sweet Home (March 26, 2008)
Then and Now (March 26, 2008)
stranded bags! (March 8, 2008)
on visas, weddings, how to get free food & funny hair dos (March 4, 2008)
Warm greetings! (February 12, 2008)
A Whole New World (February 5, 2008)
Newness in the New Year (January 6, 2008)
The Feast of Life (November 23, 2007)
Our Paris (November 11, 2007)
A Freezing Wilderness Retreat (October 22, 2007)
Reflections from a Recovering Bride (October 8, 2007)
Mr. and Mrs. Brumme (September 29, 2007)
One Month and Counting (August 22, 2007)
Everything French (July 19, 2007)
Open Wide Your Mouths! (July 9, 2007)
Learning from Trees (July 3, 2007)
A City of Lights - The Paris of Central Europe (June 25, 2007)
Brumme's Descend on Europe (June 8, 2007)
I Said Yes! (May 13, 2007)
Liaisons and Goodness Abound (April 22, 2007)
Gourmet Cuisine Catastrophe (March 21, 2007)
It Really Has Been Too Long This Time (March 15, 2007)
The French Postal System, V-Day, and Other Tidbits (February 21, 2007)
Celebrating in Paris, Working in Oxford & Relaxing in the Alps (January 29, 2007)
With Ma Petite Amie at Last! (January 11, 2007)
Hanging on for the Ride (December 31, 2006)
A New Life (December 18, 2006)
I've Gotta Go See About a Girl (November 23, 2006)
On France (November 10, 2006)
Liberating Love, an Awkward Transition and Christmas Candy (November 1, 2006)
The Western Bible (October 20, 2006)
The Whole Church Gathered (October 3, 2006)
On Steve Irwin (September 7, 2006)
Lewis on Happiness (August 10, 2006)
The Tragic "Unthinkable Crisis" (July 27, 2006)
Not My Life (July 6, 2006)
The Two Year Reunion (June 10, 2006)
A Fishy Story Set Right (May 26, 2006)
Response to "The Wedding Planner" by Sagers (April 30, 2006)
White Bunnies and Bloody Lambs (April 14, 2006)
Flexing Our Political Muscle (March 22, 2006)
For Your Viewing Pleasure (March 7, 2006)
Come to Our Church! (February 21, 2006)
Peanuts and Airplanes (February 15, 2006)
Confessing My Ignorance (January 30, 2006)
The Jewish Kid Jesus (January 16, 2006)
Friends...A Dime a Dozen? (January 9, 2006)
Old Test Article Here (January 2, 2006)
So Much to Say...That Others Have Already Said (December 23, 2005)
Narnia - at last! (December 8, 2005)
Lewis on our Eating Disorder (December 1, 2005)
North Korea - Revealing the Darkness (November 20, 2005)
Shining - Like You've Never Seen it Before (November 15, 2005)
Are You Emerging? (November 3, 2005)
A Life of Profound Significance (October 26, 2005)
The Earth at Your Fingertips (October 18, 2005)
A Surprise Appointment (October 15, 2005)
Wars and Rumors of Wars (October 3, 2005)
Laughing in the Rain (September 20, 2005)
Random Tid-Bits and Happenings (September 15, 2005)
Life and Death and Terrorists (August 30, 2005)
Girls and Boys and God (August 25, 2005)
Feasting and Worship (August 17, 2005)
Blogger's Block (August 6, 2005)
The Harvest in China (August 2, 2005)
Counting the Cost (July 24, 2005)
Absolutely Outstanding Bit of Writing (July 18, 2005)
Burning Alive (July 14, 2005)
Jesus and the Glory Golf Balls (July 10, 2005)
Those Things We Hold On To (July 7, 2005)
Grape Juice, Poured Out for the Forgiveness of Sin (June 30, 2005)
He Will Ruin Your Life (June 28, 2005)
A Bit of Perspective (June 25, 2005)
The Wedding Planner (June 22, 2005)
A Lesson in Patience Amidst Absurdity (June 16, 2005)
Fans of Hitler (June 15, 2005)
Crash and Stories (June 12, 2005)
Pastors and Leaders - Different Views (June 10, 2005)
Senior Pastors (June 5, 2005)
Ask and You Shall Receive (June 2, 2005)
What If (May 27, 2005)
The "Bible Study" (May 24, 2005)
The Future of Pixar (May 19, 2005)
The Mess We Christians Have Made (May 14, 2005)
Narnia Coming to the Big Screen (May 10, 2005)
Europe - Through the Lens of My Camera (May 7, 2005)
Same Sex Families (May 6, 2005)
Photos of Mercy (May 3, 2005)
Across an Ocean... (April 21, 2005)
The Picture, The Pope, and The Past Few Days (April 12, 2005)
In the Car with My (air) Guitar (April 6, 2005)
The Pope (April 4, 2005)
Resurrection Day (March 27, 2005)
Killing People (March 23, 2005)
Weekend of Surprises (March 22, 2005)
The Fray - Listen to this (March 12, 2005)
Akiane....This is Amazing (March 11, 2005)
Jesus Christ (March 8, 2005)
Worthy Thoughts on The Passion (March 7, 2005)
Dream Days at Church (March 3, 2005)
Peace Amidst Ambiguity (March 1, 2005)
A Verse I Hadn't Noticed Before (February 25, 2005)
McLaren and Hotel Rwanda...another perspective (February 19, 2005)
Brother Andrew is on to something (February 16, 2005)
My Valentine (February 14, 2005)
Homecoming...strange (February 13, 2005)
Hotel Rwanda (February 10, 2005)
The Update (February 6, 2005)
Malibu...Thailand...Palm Desert (January 1, 2005)
Get Ready Thailand...I'm Coming! (September 25, 2004)
God Speaks? Really? (May 29, 2004)
Life Beyond Graduation (May 1, 2004)
God's Faithfulness in Morocco (October 8, 2002)
Our Thoughts
November 3, 2005
Are You Emerging?
Postmoderns. The Emergent Church. Am I the only one that feels like the entire evangelical world is trying to figure out who these people are and what these phrases mean?

Christianity Today ran a cover story on the “Emergent Mystique” in Nov. 2004. Countless books seeking to explain or even attack the "emergents" have already been written...and no doubt many more will be. Churches are being planted specifically to target the "post-moderns", and existing churches are adding "post-modern" worship services. And now, as final proof of the extreme buzz about the emergents...I am blogging about it. When I pickup a story, you know it's real news. (note: For those of you who don't know me, insert sarcasm while reading that sentence.)

So what's the deal? Why all this hubbub? Is it much ado about nothing? Kind of.

I think what people are noticing is a growing disconnect among young adults (around 18-30) in the evangelical church. What the church has been doing somehow isn't connecting with these folks...attendance and involvement in church activities etc. is dwindling. So everyone is trying to figure out what's going on.

Brian McLaren and Dan Kimball enter the scene. They write a few books, and the "emergent" label sticks. The books challenge a lot of the traditional way evangelicals "do" church, and lots of people buy the books. Somewhere amidst all of this, the "emerging church" label sticks.

At the heart of all this talk about the postmoderns, emergents, or whatever you want to call them...is an attempt to create a nice Webster-like definition of the emergent church. Frankly, there are a bunch of definitions out there...and for every definition there seems to be a criticism from some Christian leader who has been warily watching the emergent craze, unsure of what it's really about, but given a firm "definition" they have something to criticise. And then of course every movement has to have a leader...so there's been constant attempts to define who the emerging church leaders are. McLaren and Kimball are on most of the lists, but then again, McLaren refuses to call the whole thing a "movement". He calls it a "conversation", and he is just one participant in the conversation, not a leader.

The whole craze is a bit looney if you ask me.

Being in my 20's and having many of the characteristics found in many of the definitions of the "emergents", one of my co-workers makes a point of filling me in on the latest "emergent" buzz. Just this last week he told me the color purple is apparently an emergent thing. Go figure.

I've also recently heard that a large church in Southern California is considering a redesign of its main sanctuary to appeal to the emergents. This involves moving the stage to the center of the sanctuary, and best of all...installing fog machines and laser lights.

Amazing isn't it?

Perhaps we should create the "Emergent Pastor in a Box" Kit...a few candles, some incense, a stick-on soul patch...throw in a copy of McLaren's book and you've got yourself all it takes to be a hip Emergent Pastor and reach today's youth. Right?

I feel like so many are totally missing the point. Heck, maybe I am too. But here's what I see in this group being called The Emerging Church.

I see a lot of people that are hungry for Jesus.

Oops...did I make too simple?

Again, I see people that are truly hungry for a real relationship with Jesus...that are craving the person of Jesus...ONLY Jesus.

They are not craving candles and couches. They are not craving a brilliant, articulate pastor to idolize. They are not craving religious systems. They are not craving a slick, polished Sunday morning performance. They are craving Jesus.

At it's core, that's it.

I think most of the definitions and characteristics attributed to the "Emerging Church" are really just the types of things you might expect to flow out of authentic relationship with Jesus.

For starters, worship would be central. Someone in relationship with Jesus would certainly want to praise Him with all that they are. If they're musically inclined, they might sing praises or be inspired to write worshipful songs. If they paint, they might paint for God's glory. If they dance, they may express their worship through dance. The more they know Jesus, they would intensely, even fiercely, worship Him.

Prayer would also be quite important, since a relationship with Jesus (as with any intimate relationship) wouldn't really exist if you didn't commune together. With such a big focus on prayer and worship, creating an atmosphere conducive to these things would be helpful. Rigid pews focused on a pulpit might not be a part of this atmosphere, but comfortable seating scattered about, lower-lighting (candles even?), and aesthetically-pleasing artwork might be a part of it.

The deeper they go in their relationship with Jesus, the more they would long for greater depth in their worship of Him. If they were disillusioned with much of the church culture of the day, they may explore some of the rich history and liturgy of the church, finding great encouragement in the depth with which past generations prayed and worshipped.

You would also expect someone in authentic relationship with Jesus to live a life that loudly declares that Jesus is alive. A community of such people would draw great attention to themselves, simply because of how differently they lived when compared to those around them. They might focus heavily on social justice, knowing that faith without works is dead. They may look at Jesus and see how He acted on earth...visibly demonstrating his love to everyone he encountered.

Relationship with Jesus would also result in a deep love for all who are a part of His body...the body of Christ. There would be a hunger to live intentionally in community with the body. And knowing that the hand cannot say to the eye "I don't need you", they might be especially characterized by their openness to and love for the body parts that are very different from them. They would recognize that each part of the body plays a vital role in the body's function. They may even turn away from modern church leadership structures, believing that each person is integral to the health of the body, and putting certain people on pedestals and expecting them to do the work of multiple body parts could harm the body.

I think all of these traits flow back to a very real desire for intimacy with Jesus.

And it's important to note, this is nothing new! I think it's a bit crazy to try and assign a label like "emergents" or "postmoderns" to this ambiguous category of people. There are certainly a lot of younger folks in the category, but it really runs the gamut of ages. The point is, people everywhere are craving Jesus. Some of the systems that have been setup in the church may hinder people coming into deep, authentic relationship with Jesus, so other forms of worship and life as the body of Christ are "emerging".

There isn't really one category of people we can put a label on. There isn't one complete laundry list of traits of this group. And there aren't any particular leaders. There is a growing number of people who really want to know Jesus intimately.

How they live out that relationship will take many forms, some similar to what we're used to, while other forms may look very different. Let us praise God for this pure hunger for the one who alone can satisfy. It's a hunger that has been emerging in people for centuries, and may it continue to emerge in the centuries to come!

If you are interested in learning more about this "conversation", I highly recommend Robert Webber's The Younger Evangelicals. This Wikipedia article may also be helpful. But whatever you read, remember that at it's core, it isn't about a label or some list of characteristics...it's about people genuinely hungry for relationship with Jesus.